Conduit-outlet insulator



(No Model.)

F. W. ERICKSN. CNDUIT OUTLET INSULATOR.

No. 566,507. Patented Aug.25, 1896.

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UNITED STATESl PATENT FFIE'.--

FREDERICK WILLIAM ERICKSON, OF REVERE, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OFONE-HALF TO ERIC E. ERICKSON, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

CONDUlT-OUTLET INSULATOR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 566,507, dated August25, 1896. Application iiled J'une 3, 1896. Serial No. 594,127. (Nomodel.)

To a-ZZ whom it may concern:

Y Be it known that I, FREDERICK WILLIAM ERICKSON, residing in Revere, inthe county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented anImprovement in Conduit-Outlet Insulators,of which the followingdescription, in connection with the accompanying draw.- ings, is aspecificatiom'like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

This invention relates to an electric insulator especially designed andadapted to form part of the interior conduit system with which buildingsare now commonly equipped. Buildings and like structures wired forelectricity, y

especially in large cities, employ as a conduit for the Wires a gas-pipeprovided within it with a lining of insulating material, usually a tubeof paper or fibrous material. The conduit in practice is mainlyconcealed in the the walls of the building, and where it is desired tolocate an electric light the end of the conduit, as now commonlypractised, is projected through the plaster on the wall into the room orother space in the building, and the electric insulated wires arecarried out of the conduit and connected in a suitable manner with theterminals of the electric lamps. The projecting end of the conduit andthe wires extended out therefrom are now usually concealed by a cap orshield commonly called a canopy,7 which forms part of the electriclightfixture. In practice it frequently happens that the insulation on theelectric wires is cut or broken by the rough edge of the projecting endof the Inetallic conduit-pipe, which frequently results in the formationof an arc between the wires and the said pipe, which is a source ofdanger and oftentimes results in setting the building on fire. I f theinsulation on the wires is not completely cut through by the edge of themetallic conduit pipe, it is oftentimes sufficiently weakened to cause aground on the line-circuit, thereby occasioning a loss of current due toleakage, which loss at one fixture might be disregarded commercially,butwhen such loss occurs at a large number of fixtures throughout abuilding it becomes a very important item in the cost of running theelectric-light plant.

This invention has for its obj ect to provide what I prefer to designateas an outlet-insulator for interior conduits by means of which theserious results above referred to may be avoided.

In accordance with this invention the outlet-insulator referred toconsists of a metallic member adapted to be connected to the metallicconduit-pipe and an insulating member enveloping or inclosing ,one endor half of the metallic member, as will be described, whereby theportion of the insulator projecting from the wall into the room of thebuilding may be covered by the insulating material, which preventscontact of the wires with the metallic pipe of the conduit, and therebyavoids the formation of arcs and also loss of current due to leakage.

Figure l represents in section a sufficient portion of the Wall ofabuilding provided with an interior electric conduit having anoutletinsulator embodying this-invention, the electric lamp and itsfixture being represented by dotted lines. Fig. 2 is a detail in sideelevation of the ou tlet-insulator and a portion of the conduit; Fig. 3,a longitudinal section of the outlet-insulator and conduit shown in Fig.2; Fig. 4., a detail in elevation of the metallic member of theoutlet-insulator; Fig. 5, a longitudinal section of the metallic membershown in Fig. 4; and Fig. 6, an end elevation of the metallic membershown in Fig. 4, looking toward the right.

The interior electric conduit with which my outlet-insulator is shownconsists of a metallic pipe a and a lining a of insulating material. Thepipe a is and may be an ordinary gas-pipe, and the lining a may be atube or vpipe of paper or other suitable fibrous or insulating material.

The interior conduit as now commonly employed in building and like-structures, espe cially in large cities, is concealed for the greaterpart in the walls of the building, and to illustrate this invention Ihave shown in Fig. l a section of the conduit located in the wall CL2.The conduit as new commonly constructed or applied to buildings has oneend projected through the wall of the building, but in accordance withthis invention the conduit-pipe is provided with an outlet-insulator IOOsecured to the metallic pipe of the conduit, and having its insulatedend or portion projected from the wall.

The outlet-insulator forming the subject of this invention consists of ametallic member 1),.(shown separately in Figs. l to 6, inclusive,) thesaid member comprising two parts 2 3, the part 2 being of largerdiameter than the part 3 and provided with screw-threads et on itsinterior to engage external screw-threads on the conduit-pipe a.. Thepart 2 of the metallic member b, being of larger diameter than the part3, forms an internal shoulder 5, which abuts against the end of the pipea, when the outlet-insulator is screwed upon the said pipe, and the part3, being of smaller diameter than the part 2, forms an external shoulder6, against which abuts the outer fold or layer 7 of a covering D ofinsulating material, which covering envelops the part 3 of the metallicmember on its outer and inner surfaces and also the end or edge of thesame, and for the best results the insulated covering b', whichconstitutes the insulating member of the insulator, is made thicker overthe end or edge of thepart 3 of the metallic member, as at 8, Fig. Theinsulating member b is perfectly made of a thickness on the interior ofthe part 3 of the metallic member, substantially equal to the thicknessof the lining or insulating tube or pipe a. within the metallic pipe aof the conduit, and the layer 1l() of the insulating member b within theinsulator is preferably extended to the shoulder 5, so that it abuts theinsulating lining or tube a and practically forms a continuation of thesame, thereby offering a smooth surface for the electric wires lf b tobe drawn over and to rest upon. The insulating member 1)' is preferablyprovided with a flaring mouth, so as to offer a smooth rounded surfacefor the line-wires U b" to rest upon and avoid abrasion of theinsulating material on the Wires. rlhe insulating member l may becomposed of any suitable or desired insulating material or compositionci materials, such as now commonly used for insulating purposes.

In order to more securely attach the insulating member 1)' to themetallic member l), the part 3 of the member b may be provided with oneor more ribs or projections Z123 on its outer side, as shown in Fig. (i.

In practice the connection of the outlet-insulator with the conduit-pipewill preferably be made so that only the insulating member l2' extendsor projects beyond the wall of the building, as shown in Fig. 1, therebyenabling the electrical connection to be made between the line-wires b5h6 and the terminals of the lamp Z120, supported by thc bracket Z121 orother xture provided with the canopy U22, which conceals theconnections.

l. An outlet-insulator for conduits consisting of a hollow metallicmember adapted to be connected to the metallic pipe of the couduit, andan insulating member enveloping the outer and inner surfaces and the endor edge of the metallic member opposite to the end which is attached tothe conduit-pipe, substantially as described.

2. An outletinsulator for conduits consisting of a hollow metallicmember of different diameters an d insulating material enveloping theouter and inner surfaces and the end or edge of the part of the metallicmember oli' smaller diameter, substantially as described.

An outlet-insulator for conduits consisting of the metallic member l)adapted to en gage the metallic pipe of the conduit, and the insulatingmember l2 enveloping the outer and inner surfaces and edge or end of themember l) opposite to that which engages the conduit-pipe, substantiallyas described.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

FREDERICK Wllilililill ERICKSON. lllitnesses:

JAS. ll. CH'URcHILL, J. MURPHY.

